How have immigrants been treated in Brazil so far?

Brazil received about 5 millions immigrants between 1819 and 1940. The three main contingents were Italians, Portuguese and Spanish; more than 2/3, followed by Germans and Japanese. Brazilian government encouraged European to come to Brazil as workers to replace the slaves.

But, there were rules. Brazil needed white and healthy workers, kind and obedient peasants. Refugees, gypsies, politics activists, the old and the disabled were not welcomed.

There was also, in this time, a weird thesis of whitening our population with European, so natives of Asia and Africa were no longer accepted.
Brazilians farm owners were used to deal with slaves and remained with the same mentality, ill-treating and abusing the immigrants and even naming them “the white slaves”. Many immigrants, disappointed, came back to Europe. Because of this, there was a crisis between Italy and Brazil and then the immigration of Japanese began.

I think that things haven’t changed much since then. Recently some poor illegal immigrants of Africa were arrested and sent back home. But, if a rich person wants to immigrate to Brazil, certainly, he or she will be accepted.

Posted by Neide Silva.